Advanced Potion-Making
by turquoisesocks
Summary: Lily ends up on the run from a pirate crew. Why? She stole a bit of gold. Only it turns out to be slightly more than a bit. Actually, it's Captain Potter's entire fortune. Who would have guessed?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: The Introduction.

When asked, the most exciting thing Lily Evans had ever done was become a pirate.

She had red hair and green eyes, both of which she was quite proud of. Her childhood neighbourhood, if it could be called that, was quite dull, and the most company she had ever had were Petunia, Sev and a few suitors.

Up until the morning she had left, she'd known where exactly her life was going to lead: marry, have children and watch the repeat. All while sitting in a drawing room, in a gown, reading a French play.

Not that there was anything wrong with gowns or French plays, but Lily had decided early on that she would much rather see one live. She had always been a headstrong child.

It was a glorious spring morning when she finally twirled down the lane, giddy with excitement. She had to twirl discreetly, however, or else the neighbours would gossip, and Petunia hated that.

She had packed a bag the night before and announced her intention to leave, having mulled it over for several weeks. She promised to be back—but, as her mother had tearfully said, God knew when that would be. (As it turned out, it would be several years.)

As Severus was long gone and Petunia's first reaction had been _good riddance_ , she had no one else to mourn her absence: her parents grieved, but it was their job to. At least, that was how Lily viewed it. She bid them affectionate farewells and left.

It was near ten in the morning when Lily reached the nearest village. Brimming with excitement, she lowered her the hood of her cloak and stood by the roadside

"Excuse, me, sir?" Lily called to a man in a cart. "Could you give me a lift to the nearest port?"

The old farmer looked at her skeptically, puffing on his pipe. "That'd be some while away."

"Please? I have money." She rooted around in her bag for spare coins. Pulling some out, she held them under his nose invitingly.

The farmer raised an eyebrow but slipped the coins into his breast pocket without complaint. "All righ'." He leaned in conspiratorially. "Listen, I can get you to the beginning of town, an' from there on you migh' be able to make your way on foot. Not been down tha' way in years, and I ain't sure how it is now."

Lily had agreed and found herself in the back of a small, wooden cart, driving along bumpy road, occasionally hearing the sound of warbled singing from her driver, or reveling in the peace and calm of silence, watching the green fields she was accustomed to slip into shabby houses of the poorer town settlers.

The farmer soon let her out, and she managed to slip away, keenly intent on avoiding him in the future. He had been giving her odd, leering looks was also a reminder of her old life, and she wanted nothing more than to start again: a fresh, new beginning.

The town was not how she had expected it: packed, reeking with awful stenches and filled with shouting women and misbehaving children. Lily paused. Now, which way was the sea? The vast ocean which her father had told a hundred stories about, and which her mother despised.

There had to be a sign, yes? The smell—yes, her father raved about the fresh salty air. But no, only carts rushed up and down the dirty streets, none of the clean bloom she had expected. Well, there was only one thing for it... she would have to ask for directions.

Approaching a painfully thin woman in a grey dress of even thinner material, she asked, "Excuse me, which way is the port?"

The woman looked at her skeptically.

"The port?" Lily repeated, impatience lacing her tone.

"I heard you." The woman's voice was so quiet that Lily had to lean in to hear it.

"Oh. Can you tell me the way, then?"

The woman said nothing, but seemed to be looking past Lily's shoulder. "Your hair," she whispered at last.

Self-consciously, Lily's hand went to her red locks.

The woman finally looked her in the eye. "The port is down this road, and to the left. Look for Miller's Street."

"Thank you," Lily said.

"Don't," the woman said shortly, and disappeared into the building behind her.

Was everyone in town this odd? Lily wondered as she made her way slowly towards Miller's Street, holding up her skirts. For the first time, she was deaf to the shouts around her as she walked, lost in thought.

Then, all of a sudden, something bowled right into her, nearly ramming her into the ground.

" _Ow._ " Lily stumbled . A young man stood behind her, with grey eyes and long black hair, and a very bewildered expression on his face. He grabbed her shoulders, set her upright and brushed some dirt off her sleeve. Then he took off, darting through the crowd as if his life depended on it.

Frowning, and completely confused, Lily reached up to fix her satchel—only to realise it was missing. Looking after the man, she shrieked, "You THIEF!" and without a moment's hesitation, took off after him. And as he turned the corner ahead of her, she could have sworn he was laughing, her satchel swinging from his hands.

Lily barely noticed that she was running downhill, and almost completely ignored the sea ahead of her, which was as bright a blue as the sky above it. She spurred her feet to go faster and faster along the wooden decking of the port, but then had to come to a complete standstill, mouth agape, as the young man leapt from the end of the port and came crashing down onto deck of a moving ship.

"You _bastard_!" she yelled at him, watching him clutch his sides as he howled with laughter, "You miserable, stinking heap of—"

But the breath was knocked out of her body as a second (very surprised) young man hit into her, and they both went crashing into the sea.

Gasping, she struggled to the harbour as he swam for the boat. Upon reaching a rusty old ladder, Lily hauled herself up, her sopping wet dress and red hair clinging to her back. Spying a pair of glasses bobbing in the water, she snatched them up and clambered onto the wooden decking.

"Give me my glasses!" the second man hollered from the boat.

"Give me my bag!" she shouted back.

"What the bloody—?" the young man began until he caught sight of his friend. He swore. "God damn, Sirius, what the hell did you steal her bag for? She has my glasses!"

Sirius said somberly, "We are gathered here today to mourn the great loss of Captain James Potter's esteemed glasses, ' _Harry_ ', who will be dearly missed—"

Captain James Potter swore again.

"What?" Sirius demanded, now sounding defensive. The ship slipped further and further away and Lily stamped her foot impatiently.

"It's obvious you're never going to see them again." Sirius eyed Lily. "Like a woman possessed, she is."

"I need my glasses!" Captain James Potter near-howled.

"I need my bag!" Lily retorted.

"Then come aboard," Sirius said, as if it were obvious. "Jump."

Lily hesitated, but panic, and the sight of his smug smile, made her take a flying leap—and crash into the sea.

"Shit, goddamit!" Lily sputtered loudly.

"My glasses!" James yelped, and threw down a rope ladder.

For the second time, Lily pulled herself up out of the water, shivering. Wordlessly, she brandished the glasses. Sighing, James extracted the satchel from a reluctant Sirius, and held it towards her.

"Peace offering?" he asked, and tried for a winning smile.

The sopping wet redhead chucked the glasses towards him and grabbed her satchel, turning to face the shore... only to find it was miles away.

She gaped. "How...? What...? We're so far! How on earth... how on earth did you manage that? Get me off of this thing!"

"Wormtail!" Sirius called carelessly, "Tie her up."

A small man appeared from galley with some rope and an apologetic look. He moved forward until James threw out an arm to stop him.

"Hey, wait a moment," he said, concerned. "We can't just tie up an innocent young woman for no good reason."

"Sure we can. We're _pirates_ ," Sirius said, with an air of explaining things to a toddler. "And they made _you_ captain." He shook his head.

James scowled. "Wormtail, put the rope down."

"No, tie her up."

"Leave her alone."

"No—"

"OI! Get me off this ship!" Lily shouted, making both men jump.

"Can't do that, love," Sirius said solemnly. "Pirate Code. You're our prisoner now."

Lily turned to James, speechless. When she found her voice, she sputtered, "B-but... I returned your glasses!"

James shrugged uncomfortably. "I know."

"And you're the captain!"

"I know."

"So let. Me. Go!" Lily stamped her foot for emphasis.

"Spoilt little brat," said Sirius, mildly impressed. "Listen, hon, what's your—"

But he never got to finish as Lily smacked him across the face.

"Wormtail, tie her up," James said decisively amongst Sirius's oaths and Lily's furious demands.

 _Pirates._ She was on a bloody _pirate ship._

With her hands tied together with rope.

Goddamit.

She hadn't even lasted one day. The thought made Lily mournful. What kind of adventurer was she, getting captured after barely making it two steps from home? Petunia was right. She was useless.

At least she was released for supper. Bread and cheese had never been so appetising. She wolfed her food down under the supervision of Wormtail, and then was escorted back above deck. Because they were sufficiently out at sea, the captain had deemed the rope unnecessary and allowed Lily to roam the deck freely. As it was, she decided to sit down on the prow of the ship and refuse to move.

Behind her, she could pick up snatch's of James and Sirius' conversation.

"We'll pick up Moony and McKinnon in Little Hangleton. Hopefully they'll have the supplies."

"Yeah, we can get Mary afterwards. God knows if Benjy is still alive."

"Remember that time he was caught by the authorities in London?"

"We practically saved him from the foot of the gallows."

"The idiot. He was still wearing that stupid hat."

Their voices dropped, but Lily could distinctly hear Sirius ask, "And what are we going to do about _her_?"

James sighed wearily. "I can't have any more delays. We'll have to drop her off somewhere."

"Puerto Rico?" Sirius asked enthusiastically.

" _No,_ Padfoot."

"Land ahoy!" came Wormtail's squeaky voice. Lily's head shot up—she had been examining her lap—and she spied a green land mass approaching.

"Excellent," she heard Sirius say, "You and Wormy are boring."

James replied, and then they discussed the weather—a storm seemed to be approaching, but nothing could be certain—before Sirius was ordered to take first watch. Lily felt James approach her from behind and considered jumping off the ship. For just one moment, the urge was overwhelming—and the land was getting bigger and bigger—and she buckled her knees until James said casually, "I wouldn't. Shark infested water."

Lily took a deep breath and stepped back.

She grew distinctly aware of James watching her curiously. After a moment, he said, "So. You know my name; I think it's only polite that you share yours."

Lily hesitated before replying stiffly. "Lily Evans."

"Ah. Pleased to meet you," the captain said courteously, "And, pray tell, what were you doing in town before Sirius had the pleasure of running into you?"

Lily kept her eyes fixed on the horizon—the land—as she again waited before replying. "I was travelling."

"Oh? You don't look like a travelling type."

"It was my first time."

"Ah well, now you get to travel even more. I assume you want to be let off here."

"Damn right I do!" It burst out before she could restrain herself.

"Relax, relax. I plan on letting you out there, at those docks." He pointed. "It will be dark by then though, and I'm not sure if you can keep yourself safe, wandering those streets by yourself." He looked at her doubtfully from out of the corner of his eye.

"None of this would have happened if you hadn't forced me on board!" she hissed furiously, turning to face him.

James looked surprised. "I didn't force you anywhere. If I remember correctly, you came on voluntarily."

"You know I couldn't have given up the bag, it has all my worldly possessions in it. If it wasn't for the arrogant bastard you call your friend, I'd still be in the city, like I wanted," Lily said.

James raised his eyebrows. "For a young lady, you can swear like a sailor."

For the first time, Lily blushed. "My father used to sail," she muttered.

"And he taught you to swear?"

"I picked it up. Never had a chance to use it before now."

"Beginner's enthusiasm. You grow out of it." James watched her out of the corner of his eye, and silence descended on the pair.

Abrupt, James asked, "Why did you leave?"

Lily sighed. She had given the essay version to her parents, but was too tired to explain it to this to the handsome jerk who appeared to be under the impression that he was a pirate, so all she said was, "Freedom, I guess. I just wanted to."

James nodded. "We've all been there." Then he left. Lily tried not to stare after him.

Just as James said, it was dark by the time they reached the docks.

Lily had finally moved from the hull and now fidgeted impatiently at the side as James and Sirius directed the other sailors on board. She peered into the distance, and at the water, but nothing moved.

"Oi!" a voice said. "Ginger!" Sirius appeared at her side. "I was told to tell you that we need to pick up some of our crew, and then we'll let you out to continue on your merry way, to wherever _that_ may be..." He muttered something about a brothel.

Lily scowled. "I can't wait."

As they came even nearer, Lily could make out buildings in the fog. "Where exactly are we?" she asked, slightly uncomfortable.

"Little Hangleton," Sirius said promptly. "A little off-course, but there's nothing can be done about that. Mug—" He stopped abruptly, threw her a quick glance and walked away.

The buildings were clearer now, the windows lit up by the light within. Lily thought that she make out shouting.

As she leaned forward, two doors burst open, making light spilled out onto the cobblestones. Lily could make two figures laden with sacks running out, an angry mob behind them. She stared in disbelief.

Sirius whooped and laughed as James, also grinning, ordered the ropes to be undone. The two figures sprinted up, hollering until they were hoarse. The ship had already begun the move slowly away as the two leapt up from the docks and crashed onto the deck. Lily wondered if this was some sort of weird tradition.

They sprang up again immediately, and joined Sirius, James and Wormtail in shouting and gloating at the fuming men by the docks, many of whom were shaking their fists.

When this all died down, one new companion turned around and started when he saw Lily.

"Who's this?" he asked Sirius in an undertone.

"Some crazy bitch called Evans," Sirius said dismissively.

Now, Lily had always been known for her temper. There was something so infuriating about Sirius Black, and not in a good way. (Not like the captain.) Plus, she had had a very long day. This was the furthest she had ever been from home, and she was tired, cold and hungry goddamit.

In two strides she had crossed the deck, slapped him, burst into tears and stormed away.

Everyone stared after her, until James spoke.

"Well done, Padfoot, you absolute prat."


	2. Chapter 2

p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Chapter Two: /span/strong/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"It was the next morning, Lily Evans still hadn't emerged from her cabin. She missed breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, and by the time dinner rolled around, James and the rest of the crew were becoming concerned./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"James sighed. "em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Really/em Padfoot?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""What?" Sirius demanded. "She might have died or something."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""And the best way of finding em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"that/em out is by knocking down her door with a cannon?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""I'm not going to fire the cannon, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm just going to ram it against the wood, see?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Please don't demonstrate." As the captain and first mate continued to bicker, Remus rolled his eyes./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""How about we just em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"knock/em?" he suggested./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Thank you/em. Remus, you are officially promoted to first mate." James leaned forward and rapped smartly against the wood./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"No sound came from within./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""What's her problem?" James asked. "She hasn't been up all morning. Is she sick or something?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""James," Remus sighed. "She's stuck on a pirate ship. Usually, this is not an ideal situation to find yourself in. Maybe she just needs time to herself."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"James blinked while Sirius scowled. "What?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""She isn't having the time of her life, you know," Remus went on, shamelessly enjoying his moral advantage. "She's probably scared, and homesick, and unhappy..."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Both pirates had the grace to look ashamed. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Don't look at me!" James said quickly. "Sirius was the one being an insensitive prick."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""And Remus is promoted to captain while James is regulated to annoying toddler," Sirius said in a bored voice. "Just leave her. She'll come out eventually." He made to turn towards the stairs that led to the deck./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Prongs has a point, you know," Remus said. "You em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"were/em an insensitive prick."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Don't worry, I'll apologize! Keep your asses on, right?" Sirius said impatiently. "But the em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Phoenix /emisn't going to sail herself." And with that, he stomped upstairs and out of view./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"James and Remus looked at each other. The former began to grin./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"He feels guilty/em."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Remus grinned back. "Oh, Padfoot."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"*/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily paced her cabin. James Potter. Severus Snape. Sirius Black. Mr Evans. She paused. Yep. Those were pretty much the only men in her life. And three out of four of them were on bad terms with her./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"There was a knock. She froze. Then crept to the door and pressed her ear against it. The voices were too low and muffled to make out. The knock didn't repeat./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"She paced for another few minutes and then threw herself on her bed, scowling when her stomach rumbled. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"*/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"By dinner, James had had enough. He was not known for his patience, and this Evans girl starving herself didn't exactly sit well on his conscience. So he arranged to have dinner sent to her./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""She still hasn't moved. Just yelled through the door," Peter reported. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""What did she say?" the captain asked tersely./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Er..."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Never mind," James growled. "I'll give it to her myself."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"He grabbed the plate and, muttering, set off down to the cabins./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"He knocked on the door. "Evans! Come out or so help me I will—"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Go away!" came the rude reply./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""No!"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Why the hell not?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Why should I?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Just go away, James Potter."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Just open the door, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI have food."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"There was silence. Then—"OK."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""OK?" James repeated, thrown by the abruptness. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily opened the door slowly and nearly groaned out loud. Because of course Captain James Potter wasn't wearing a shirt. No, apparently one has to be vaguely civilised to do that. Or have at least half a brain./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"*/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"And of course he insisted staying for dinner. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"*/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Look, Evans," Potter said adamantly as she glared at the floor. "It's best if you think about this logically—I have the food. I need to make sure you eat. Plus, we have a few things to discuss. If I leave, the food leaves with me."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily continued to refuse to look at him. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Fine, then," Potter sighed. "I guess we'll have to throw these lovely em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"potatoes/em and em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"beef/em overboard for the fishes..." He shook his head in sorrow. "What a waste."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Fine!" Lily all but yelled, and grabbed the plate off him. "You're allowed to stay."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Potter grinned. "Thank you for your gracious permission." He sat down, making himself comfortable. "How're things going? You seem a little quiet."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily threw him a scathing look, a rather hard feat considering her face was stuffed with potatoes./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""No, really." Now Potter looked earnest, the prat. "Are you OK?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily sighed. She flicked a strand of hair out of her eyes, then shrugged and returned to her meal. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""You were on the verge of saying something," Potter pointed out. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""It's just..." Lily began, chewing over her words. She needed to play this right. "This whole adventure thing is not exactly how I imagined it." She feigned a sorrowful look, then wondered if she'd overdone it./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""It never is," James said sagely. He ran a hand through his hair and examined her critically. "Anyway, go on."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"It's a little boring," Lily went on. "And lonely. I didn't really have many friends back home either—just the men from my neighbourhood. And my sister, Petunia." Her face hardened. "Neither were the best company."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""You said your father used to be a sailor," Potter said curiously. "What does he do now?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily blanched, then recovered herself quickly. "Trading, stuff like that. I'm not quite sure. Business and maths is more my sister's forte, to be completely honest."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""What's your sister like?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""I've already answered a question. It's your turn."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Potter leaned back in his chair. "Go on."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily took a breath. "What was going on last night, when the two people jumped on board? Why were they running?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Standard pirate procedure," Potter said. "Weirdly enough, a lot of people aren't all that fond of us."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""What was in those bags they had?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"He flashed her a grin. "Wouldn't em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"you/em like to know."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"It was then that Lily's suspicions were confirmed. People only smiled like that when they talked about money. It was the same smile suitors had had on their faces whenever they looked at her. Shrewd by nature, it hadn't been long before Lily had picked it up./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"A plan began to form in her mind./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Well," she said casually. "Must be very valuable if you're keeping it a secret from me."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"James' grin widened. He stood up. "Nice try. Look, I'm sorry about getting caught up in all this—," He gestured vaguely around her cabin "—and to make up for it, I'm going to skip the extortion and kidnapping business, and instead drop you off as soon as possible, free of charge. Deal?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""How kind of you," Lily said dryly. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Pirate etiquette," Potter said, winking as he left./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"*/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Did you talk to her?" Remus asked as James emerged on deck./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Of course he did," Sirius said, rolling his eyes. "He's grinning like a fifteen year old who got his first kiss."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Shut up," James said happily./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Remus hid a smirk. "Did you get along well?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"James opened his mouth, but Sirius cut him off. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Don't we have more important things to discuss?" He raised his eyebrows meaningfully./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Right," said James, as if coming out of a trance. He carefully scanned the deck before muttering, "em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Muffliato/em."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Be careful," Remus warned. "If any of the Muggle crew or Lily see you—"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""The Ministry will lose their shit," Sirius finished for him. "We know, Moony. Anyway—," he took on a gleeful look "—what about the package?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""I put it in your cabin," Remus said to James, who nodded./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Wormtail and I cast a bunch of protection charms on it last night, so it should be safe. We'll deliver it to the old man in about five days' time, and then drop off Evans. Sound good?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Sirius grinned but Remus, wincing, said, "We should probably Obliviate her, Prongs."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"There was a short silence. Eventually James said, reluctant, "Yeah. You're right. We'll do that before she disembarks."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Sirius clapped James on the back. "Come on," he said briskly. "Let's find Wormtail."/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"*/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily fell asleep a few hours after Potter left, and woke up in pitch darkness. Peering out of the small porthole, she saw the inky black sea and immediately swung her legs out of her bunk./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily had no idea where Potter and the crew were planning to drop her off. Probably some godforsaken desert island in the middle of nowhere. They were pirates, after all. So instead of waiting around for them to do that, Lily would sneak her way off board, hopefully a few coins richer./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"But first, she needed to find out the layout of the ship without causing suspicion./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"She pulled the key from the hook and slid it into the lock, praying that the door didn't creak. She was uneasy at the thought of stealing—em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"what would her mother think?/em—but her conscience was reassured by the fact that they were pirates, and probably had no qualms about robbing innocent people of their fortunes./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"She steeled herself and then tip-toed out of the cabin. The ship swayed from side to side, making her stumble as she climbed the wooden staircase. In a few moments she was up on deck./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily made herself as inconspicuous as possible, holding her breath in the shadow. But there was no need—the deck was absolutely empty./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"It looked eerie, like a ghost ship. Coils of rope lay undisturbed. The sails—still open—shifted slightly in the breeze. No one was in sight, not even a watchman./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanPerhaps this was going to be easier than she expected. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Silver stars glimmered above her, and a pale half moon illuminated the deck. Lily took a few tentative steps forward. It was too quiet. The only sound was that of the water lapping against the boat./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"Lily paused under the rope ladder that led to the crow's nest. She rested a hand on it, remembering the way she and Severus used to climb trees as children. But, like all memories of Severus Snape, it was tinged with bitterness, because he had left, hadn't he? He'd abandoned her./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"She pulled herself up onto the ladder. She had never quite been comfortable with heights, the one trait she and Petunia had in common, but sitting in the crow's nest would give her the best view of her surroundings./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"She took her time climbing the ropes, aware of the deck becoming increasingly smaller below her./span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"She was nearly at the top when it happened. Her foot got tangled in the rope. In a moment of sheer panic, Lily almost lost her grip, her sweaty palms sliding against the cord. She took a deep breath—/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;""Excuse me, who the em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"hell/em are you?"/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"—and leapt out of her skin, losing her footing completely. There was a tiny, unending moment of stillness, and then she was plunging towards the ground./span/p 


End file.
